• Queerty: High School Musical co-stars Frankie Rodriguez & Joe Serafini (above photo back in the day via Disney+) have announced their real-life engagement. They confirmed they were dating in 2021.
• LGBTQ Nation: A bar in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, was fined $15K for anti-trans discrimination after a state commission found that the bar not only banned a trans woman from using the women’s restroom but also selectively scanned people’s IDs at the door with a policy that targeted trans patrons. Continue reading “‘High School Musical’ Co-Stars Announce Engagement + More”
• Broadway World: A new production of the beloved musical The Fantasticks, reimagined as a contemporary gay love story, is now in development for Broadway under the direction and choreography of my longtime friend and Tony Award winner Christopher Gattelli.
Brody the wonder dog (above) sends his regards for a happy Labor Day holiday weekend. And since you’re here, some news stories you might have missed: • The Advocate: A Florida man who threatened a judge after she dismissed a suit challenging the state’s “don’t say gay” law has been sentenced to five years in federal prison. Continue reading “Brody Sends Regards + ‘The Gay Best Friend’ + More News”
(image via Depositphotos) Some news items you might have missed: • The Advocate: A new study out of Stanford has found that while men’s average sperm counts and testosterone levels have decreased over the past 30 years, their penises have gotten 24% longer. Continue reading “Study Shares Good & Bad News For Men + More”
Some news items you might have missed: • HuffPost: Apparently there are ads on porn sites suggesting men pour apple cider vinegar on their junk to increase size??? Do. Not. Do. This. Continue reading “News Round-Up: August 12, 2021”
Some news items you might have missed: • Instagram: Not everyone is celebrating ‘Bachelor’ star Colton Underwood getting a Netflix series that will follow his new life as an openly gay man after coming out this week. When Attitude Magazine posted the news (above), pop star Adam Lambert chimed in, “No one is feeling this Netflix.” And out former rugby star Keegan Hirst wrote, “Monetising coming out. Oh dear. Not a good look.” • Kenneth-in-the-212: Check out Kenneth’s weekly round-up of the what’s what in LGBTQ publications like this week’s GRAB Magazine featuring singer/songwriter Dodie. (image via GRAB Magazine) • PBS: A new PBS NewsHour/NPR/Marist poll found two-thirds of Americans (66%) oppose laws that would limit transgender rights. That opposition includes majorities of every political ideology from liberal to conservative and every age group. • CBC: A gym in Quebec City has become one of the largest recorded COVID-19 super-spreading events in Canada as 224 cases have been traced directly to the gym as well as another 356 related cases. The gym owner, a pandemic denier, shared social media posts that questioned the effectiveness of masks and minimized the dangers of COVID-19.
• Instinct Magazine: A straight man began sharing pics of his enormous penis on Twitter during the pandemic, and now says he identifies as bisexual following all the attention he garnered from gay followers. “I think if I met the right one, and got to know and like and trust him, I might find the courage to… explore.” • NBC News: A new bill in the Texas Senate aims to redefine child abuse to include parents who consent to hormone therapy and puberty blockers for their transgender children. The legislation would make such acts a felony. • Pink News: A student was caught on video tearing down a Pride flag that hung along a stairwell at Ridgeline High School in Cache County, Utah, on Tuesday. It had been placed by officials to celebrate the school’s Gay Straight Alliance during diversity week, alongside flags from various countries.
This is disgusting and heartbreaking. The amount of kids cheering when the Pride flag gets cut down is sickening. Embarrassing moment for Utahns and Ridgeline High School. Be better. 🏳️🌈🏳️⚧️ #ridgelinehighschoolpic.twitter.com/zD1zrr7ZuD
Malcolm MacDonald (screen capture via The Sun) After losing his penis due to a blood infection, a 45-year-old UK man is the recipient of a new penis being grown on his forearm. MacDonald, who lives in Norfolk, UK, struggled for years with an infection of his perineum, the area between the anus and testicles. Over time, the infection spread to his fingers and toes causing them to turn black. Then, one day, he was shocked to see his penis turn black as well. “It was like a horror film,” MacDonald told The Sun. “I was in a complete panic. I knew deep down it was gone and I was going to lose it.” “Then one day it just dropped off on to the floor,” he adds. “Because I had been through the devastation of knowing I was going to lose it, I just picked it up and put it in the bin.” MacDonald, who works as a mechanic, says the best doctors could do for him at the time was “to roll the remaining stump up like a little sausage roll.” The separated dad-of-two fell into a depression, became a recluse, and began drinking heavily. In 2016, his doctor referred him to Professor David Ralph, a specialist in phallus reconstruction in residence at University College Hospital in London. Ralph and his team were able to take skin grafts from MacDonald’s arm and butt to build the new penis along with a vein from his leg for blood flow. During discussions about what the new appendage would look like, MacDonald asked for – and received – an additional two inches. (Malcolm MacDonald (screen capture) “They were happy to listen to what I wanted it to be like, which was amazing,” says MacDonald. “Not many can say they have a designer penis.” The procedure, funded by the NHS, cost £50,000 ($65,000US). He says when he first saw the penis on his left arm, he felt “so, so proud.” He adds that, like any other man, he “just couldn’t leave it alone” in the beginning – “I thought it was the best thing ever.” The penis was ‘grown’ over the next two years and in 2018, it was time to transplant the new appendage (that he had nicknamed ‘Jimmy’) to his groin along with a penile implant to help him achieve erections. But, the final surgery has been postponed numerous times due to illness, transportation, and scheduling mistakes. Last December, he was ready and prepped for the operation but a last-minute staff shortage caused another cancellation. Then, in April, he was scheduled again for the transplant but the COVID-19 pandemic put the surgery on hold again. MacDonald tells The Sun he hopes to be able to have the surgery before the end of the year. “It really feels like it is time to get it off,” admits the 45-year-old. “I can’t run because it waggles about. I can’t go swimming or wear a short-sleeve shirt.” “I can’t lie, having a penis on your arm for four years is a really strange thing to live with,” adds MacDonald. “But I am determined this penis will be ultimately used for what it was built for.” (source: The Sun)
In an essay for AskMen.com, writer/comedian Ross Asdourian explains that, yes, you can break your penis. After personally experiencing his own bruised banana during a romp in the sheets, followed by two emergency surgeries, he hopes to explain the ‘nuts and bolts’ (as it were) of the what and how of surviving a broken penis. As Asdourian points out, the penis isn’t a bone you can technically break. “The penis has three relevant parts to this article — two spongy tissues sacks (corpora cavernosa) that fill up with blood when you get erect and the urethra (that thing you pee and squeege out of),” explains Asdourian in his non-medical way. “If you’ve ever heard of a break, it’s actually a tear of one of those tissue sacks or a fracture of the urethra.” The writer shares that he hit the trifecta of penile injuries by tearing both of his ‘spongy sacks’ and severing his urethra. Asdourian shares that his banana break occurred having sex in the doggy position. In fact, a small 2017 study found that doggy-style is the sexual position that offers the most danger for guys going to Pound Town. If you like a big swing to your strokes, chances are you might miss reentry sometime. The result might be what’s known as a ‘penile fracture.’ Not only will there be substantial pain involved, but if you’ve really broken something there will be ample swelling and discoloration. Ross Asdourian Asdourian is stone-cold serious when he says: do not hesitate, get yourself to the emergency room. Sometimes, guys don’t want to face the embarrassment of explaining the incident to medical personnel. And sure, if this were stubbing your big toe, you might just tough it out. But as Asdourian notes: This. Is. Not. Your. Toe. What happens if you delay? Most importantly, your penis will not heal properly. The upshot of that could be bad blood flow meaning possibly no erections. And if you get erections, they could be really painful. In Asdourian’s case, he had to endure a three-hour surgery to repair the damage done. It took four weeks of recovery to be able to urinate on his own. After a few months, he regained full sexual function. “The long term effects of short term inaction are irreversible,” reports Asdourian. “Set your ego aside, do not play it cool, and get that hose to a doctor.” You can read more about his adventures with a broken penis in his funny/not-so-funny take on the experience titled, Broken Bananah: Life, Love, and Sex…Without a Penis.
Michael Henry (screen capture) I love funnyman Michael Henry for his zany takes on the constantly shifting gay zeitgeist. Henry’s latest NSFW-ish YouTube video asks the age-old question – “Does size really matter?” – and comes up with some surprising considerations. In the clip, Henry and pals are hanging in the park consoling their friend who broke up after a lengthy (six weeks!) romance. It turns out there was “one small, tiny problem.” And you know exactly what’s coming… As his friend recoil over the idea of small peen, Henry steps up to declare he’s he’s definitely a fan. “I love ’em,” says Henry. “Much more than the large ones. I want to slop those slippery twigs right up.” As his park pals dream of “massive man meat” and “shattered pelvic floors,” Henry explains via his own reality. “I know my limits – I have big teeth and a small mouth,” says the funnyman. “And excuuuuuse me for having a gag reflex! People are supposed to know when they’re choking.” When one friend points out that the anus is a muscle…? “I don’t feel like putting it to the test.” But, but, but…Big D! Nope, Mr. Henry is not interested. Of course, it’s worth noting that “small” and “big” can be relative to the person using the term. When actual numbers enter the discussion, clarity sets in.
As his park pals dream of “massive man meat” and “shattered pelvic floors,” Henry explains via his own reality. “I know my limits – I have big teeth and a small mouth,” says the funnyman. “And excuuuuuse me for having a gag reflex! People are supposed to know when they’re choking.” When one friend points out that the anus is a muscle…? “I don’t feel like putting it to the test.” But, but, but…Big D! Nope, Mr. Henry is not interested. Of course, it’s worth noting that “small” and “big” can be relative to the person using the term. When actual numbers enter the discussion, clarity sets in.